The field of this invention is that of barbecue cookers or roasters which cook or roast such foods as meats, sea foods, vegetables, and the like on a grate or grill, the heat source being applied from underneath the grate or grill. More particularly, the present invention pertains to the field of cookers or roasters which can be mounted in the top of a table as in a restaurant or household.
Such cookers or roasters can generate large quantities of smoke and grease, particularly when meats are being barbecued. For sanitary, safety, and aesthetic reasons, smoke produced by the barbecue or roaster should be properly disposed of rather than allowing it to permeate into the ambient air, particularly when the barbecue is mounted indoors in a restaurant or household. Overhead collection means to collect and dispose of the smoke after it has risen from the barbecue cooker or stove are well known in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 731,985 to Warren shows a smoke collecting hood for stoves which is hung over the stove to catch and trap smoke rising therefrom. However, because the smoke must rise vertically from the stove to the overhead hood, smoke may permeate the surrounding atmosphere rather than rise into the hood. Such overhead smoke collection means are not very efficient and require an additional unit to be supplied with the stove when the stove is mounted in the top of a table or counter.
Smoke collection means which are part of the stove and draw off the smoke in a different direction than from overhead are known to the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,663 to Jenn et al. discloses a ventilated portable electric grill which has an adjoining upwardly extending portion housing a power driven fan which draws air, smoke, and cooking vapors across the grill element and into the upwardly extending portion. The fan outlet discharges to the exterior of the stove at which point a pipe or tube can be provided to direct the smoke out of the room to the exterior of the house or restaurant. Such an assembly is not well adapted to fit into a table flush with the surface thereof because of the upwardly extending portion containing the fan. Furthermore, Jenn et al. did not disclose a grill assembly adapted to be used with gas burners.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,291,668 to Moeller discloses a griddle ventilating system which provides collection inlets formed in walled members spaced around the grill in order to draw the smoke away from the grill. A receiving chamber having a filter receives the smoke from the wall members and conducts it away from the grill. This ventilating system draws smoke to the sides away from the grill rather than allowing it to rise straight up as in Warren.
However, the ventilating system of Moeller is not well adapted for use in tabletop barbecues or grills which should be mounted flush with the top of the table. In addition, the smoke must make several right angle turns in passing through the wall members mounted around the grill in order to reach the filter. In the course of its travel to the filter, grease particles entrained in the smoke may be deposited in the smoke passages and create a fire hazard. The collection inlets and smoke passages are not easily cleaned because of the difficulty of the disassembly of the wall members.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,705 to Kurotaki discloses a smoke collecting and exhausting system for a roaster which is mounted in and flush with the top of a table. A grill is set in a recess in the roaster upon which meats are roasted. Flame is provided by two gas burners. A smoke ventilation system draws smoke to the sides of the grill, around and underneath the grill and a juice receiver, down through a duct to a right angled bend in the duct underneath the floor, through a filter removably mounted in the duct, and thence on outward to a smoke exhaust means such as a chimney.
Although Kurotaki provides a tabletop roaster designed for interior use, as in a restaurant, the roaster so provided has a number of problems. First, two burners are provided which requires more complicated gas supply, ignition, and ventilation systems than that of a single burner, and a greater fuel consumption than a single burner would use. Second, the two burners are mounted at the sides of the inner roaster body so that flames may rise up and curl over the sides of the inner roaster body and then down into the smoke collection passages, owing to the suction of the ventilation system. This may set fire to grease accumulations inside the roaster and heat the sides of the roaster to a dangerously high temperature. Third, the parts of the roaster are not easily removable for cleaning. Thus, grease may collect in hard to reach places and present a fire hazard. Fourth, the filter is located at some distance from the roaster and the smoke has to pass through several turns in order to reach it. This will cause grease particles entrained in the smoke to deposit in curved portions and ledges of the roaster and right angled portions of the smoke passages, creating a fire hazard. Fifth, the filter is located at some distance from the roaster, which is inconvenient as well as dangerous in that the smoke is not filtered soon after it is generated, thus increasing likelihood of grease deposition. For all the above reasons, the Kurotaki roaster cannot pass basic sanitary and safety standards in order to permit its use in this country in commercial establishments and in households. In particular, the Kurotaki roaster would not comply with the American Gas Association's American National Standards Z83.14 and Z83.14a-1983 which cover gas counter appliances. In addition, the Kurotaki roaster does not appear to be well adapted to receive and heat water for steaming vegetables and the like, and must draw air from above it for combustion which interferes with effective smoke collection.
Accordingly, what is needed is a safe, easily cleaned, smokeless, efficient, tabletop barbecue cooker able to meet national standards for such appliances in commercial establishments and households and capable of cooking a variety of foods. Such a cooker should also be capable for being manufactured for use with various heating means.